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Did Southern California movers attempt to privatize Operation Fast and Furious by shipping a client’s guns, which were supposed to be in storage, to his new home in the Middle East? Gary Smallwood contracted with Allied Van Lines, Inc. and SIRVA, Inc. (collectively, AVL) to move some of his household goods from southern California to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and to move the remainder of the goods — including a box full of firearms and ammunition — to storage....

Pendley v. Fed. Mine Safety & Health Review Comm’n, No. 09-3213 involved a plaintiff’s petition for review of an order of the Federal Mine Safety & Health Reivew Commission, which affirmed the ALJ’s ruling against the petitioner in his suit against his former employer claiming wrongful termination. In granting in part and denying in part the petititon, the court held that the Commission erred in its analysis of the ALJ’s decision with regard to defendant’s three-part justification for terminating plaintiff’s employment, as at the very least, the Commission departed from its own precedent without articulating a reason for doing so....

The Hippocratic oath requires that doctors keep patient information confidential. But what happens when the patient who is encountering a serious, possibly life-threatening, medical situation is the president of the United States? After President Donald Trump reported to the world via Twitter on Oct. 2 that he had contracted COVID-19, the information from his doctors about his condition has been erratic and contradictory. In one sense, this is understandable. The Hippocratic oath states, “Whatever I see or hear in the lives of my patients … which ought not to be spoken of outside, I will keep secret....

It was recently announced that in the Jones Day gender bias lawsuit a new plaintiff, currently a product counsel at Facebook and former Jones Day associate, has opted in. Last month, the plaintiffs in the case put out a call to other former Jones Day associates to join their case. The plaintiffs claim that the firm has discriminated against women when it comes to pay. The allegations explain that the firm’s culture is deeply centered around men, which hinders women’s opportunities to advance, and that the secrecy around pay and pay decisions results in unequal pay....

The past month was a busy one for fashion brands as two lawsuits made headlines (but thankfully had no effect on hemlines). In the first suit, designer Rachel Roy is suing Jones Apparel Group (“Jones”), where she is trying to stop Jones from selling her brand for $14.6 million to Bluestar Alliance, allegedly in violation of several agreements between Roy and Jones, reports WWD. (subscription only) In the next, Aeropostale is suing H&M for trademark infringement over the use of the phrase “Live Love Dream,” says WWD....

US v. Gatlin, 09-2793, concerned a challenge to a defendant’s conviction for possession of a firearm by a felon in violation of 18 U.S.C. sections 922(g)(1) and 924(e)(1). In affirming the conviction, the cour theld tha the district court did not err in denying defendant’s motion to suppress the gun as both a stop and limited search of defendant were constitutionally proper. Also held, district court did not abuse its discretion in denying defendant’s motion to disclose an informant’s identity....

If you thrive on the drama of the Christian Louboutin-Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) red-soled shoe litigation, or any fashion litigation, then the Second Circuit Court of Appeals is a great place to get your fix. While the Second Circuit is expected to issue its sole decision soon, we’re guessing that red soles will soon make way for the appellate court to evaluate the power of the letter G in the Gucci v....

District court judgment denying a petition for habeas relief is affirmed where: 1) recent decisions by the New York Court of Appeals announcing a change in New York’s law of depraved indifference murder are not applicable to plaintiff’s conviction; and 2) the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment does not require the retroactive application of a new interpretation of a criminal statute in the collateral review of plaintiff’s conviction. Read Henry v....

If you read about sexual harassment claims for the saucy details, this post will be a disappointment. But if you secretly hope that a run-of-the-mill constructive discharge claim will belie the notions of respect and cohesiveness in academia, you’re in for a treat with today’s Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals selection. This case, Savage v. Gee, has it all: sexual harassment claims, constructive discharge allegations, First Amendment retaliation, and a controversial reading recommendation....

There are a few legal principles in criminal law that almost every American knows. One of those is a person’s constitutional right to “plead the fifth”. It comes up again and again in Congressional testimony, media reports of ongoing investigations, and in movies and television shows ranging from police procedurals to mafia stories. So, what does taking the fifth mean? Where does this right come from? And, importantly, what can we infer if a person does plead the fifth?...

Jennifer Newstead is the new general counsel at Facebook, but is that a good thing? Newstead helped write the Patriot Act, which expanded the government’s ability to access Americans’ records and spy on them. Too many, it seemed like a good idea at the time, because terrorists had attacked the country on Sept. 11, 2001. But that was then, and this is now. Facebook has a history of mishandling people’s information....

Missouri residents will soon have a much easier time finding the best happy hour deals, thanks to a recent decision in the Eighth Circuit. State law barred restaurants and bars from advertising discounted rates for alcohol, including through specials and coupons. They could advertise that they had a happy hour or other specials, but could not go into any detail about pricing. The Missouri Broadcasters Association, along with three other plaintiffs, filed a First Amendment claim in federal court in 2013....

Whether it’s referring to a bloody knee or just barely getting by, “scraping” isn’t usually associated with a positive action. However, according to the Ninth Circuit, popular professional networking site LinkedIn cannot protect users’ public profiles from data scraping. On appeal, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court decision granting a preliminary injunction requested by hiQ, a data analytics company, to keep LinkedIn from barring access to public member profiles. The decision puts a limit on how far the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act can go when it comes to preventing unauthorized aggregation of user data....

In 2004, in response to inmate violence, California State Prison at Corcoran instituted harsh restrictions on prisoners – especially black prisoners. When an inmate sued, the jury was instructed that, while the restrictions should be judged by strict scrutiny, jurors should also give deference to prison officials’ decisions. That’s some sort of scrutiny, but it’s not a strict one, the Ninth Circuit ruled yesterday. In doing so, the court was forced to navigate somewhat conflicting Supreme Court precedents....

In a petition for review of the BIA’s order removing petitioner from the U.S. for committing an aggravated felony, the petition is granted where: 1) petitioner was not charged, either explicitly or implicitly, with an aggravated felony as defined by 8 U.S.C. section 101(a)(43)(U); 2) subsection U is not a necessarily included offense under subsection M of the same statute; and 3) petitioner therefore was denied her due process rights of notice and an opportunity to be heard when the BIA sua sponte found her removable on the basis of her conviction for an aggravated felony as defined by subsection U....

How do you have to “notify” a creditor of an intent to rescind a mortgage? Five circuits to decide the issue held that “notify” meant filing a lawsuit, while three said that a written notice was sufficient. A unanimous U.S. Supreme Court today agreed with the minority, holding that a simple letter notifying the creditor of the intent to rescind is good enough to rescind the loan. The Truth in Lending Act gives a borrower up to three years to rescind a loan if the lender failed to make the required disclosures....

Last October, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit overturned two mail and wire fraud convictions against media mogul Conrad Black. These decisions came after the U.S. Supreme Court sent Black’s four convictions back to the 7th Circuit, for a ruling on the “Honest Services” issue. Black’s second bid to the U.S. Supreme Court, however, was not as fruitful. This week, the United States Supreme Court rejected an appeal challenging Black’s two remaining convictions on fraud and obstruction of justice, reports Canadian Business....

Arizona: the proving ground for state immigration and abortion laws. We’ve seen a lot of movement on Arizona abortion cases lately, and on Monday, the Supreme Court declined to intervene in an ongoing challenge to the state’s illegal immigrant harboring statute, which means the injunction, which currently blocks enforcement of the state law, will remain in place during the litigation. An en banc challenge to a related law, which prohibits bail for illegal immigrants, was recently argued before the court and is awaiting a decision....

In an action claiming medical indifference in violation of the Eighth Amendment, district court judgment is affirmed in part and vacated in part where: 1) the continuing violation doctrine can apply to Eighth Amendment claims of medical indifference brought under 42 U.S.C. sec. 1983 when the plaintiff shows an ongoing policy of deliberate indifference to his or her serious medical needs and some acts in furtherance of the policy within the relevant statute of limitations period; 2) the court properly granted plaintiff leave to amend his complaint in order to state timely Eighth Amendment claims based on the continuing violation doctrine; 3) the court properly dismissed plaintiff’s claims with prejudice as to certain defendants; 4) plaintiff is granted leave to replead his claims against named and unnamed supervisors and replead his municipal liability claim against the City; and 5) plaintiff’s ADA and Rehabilitation Act claims are remanded as the court did not address whether the continuing violation doctrine applied to plaintiff’s disability discrimination claims....

The Super Bowl is right around the corner, and while the pandemic will certainly change or outright cancel a lot of parties, we know by now that many people will still get together. In the excitement of being able to see your friends, it’s important to remember that if you’re hosting and serving alcohol, you may still have to be the “fun police.” You want people to leave your party remembering what a great time they had, but you also have to make sure everyone stays safe....